Hotel booking agents ➔
with HBAs, but less so in the traditional function of fulfilling transient hotel requests. So what is that demand for? HRS' managing director in London, Jon
West, accepts the HBA label only reluctantly: “We are an online booking tool, a GDS and a booking agent whose primary purpose is quality content. That sets HRS apart from anyone else in this market. Our USP is to distribute content on behalf of hotels.” Chris Parnham is the chairman of the
Hotel Booking Agents Association (HBAA). “Although the emphasis is on value for money and transparency, corporates want a wider solution that gives them access to all types of transient and meetings accommodation. HBAs are the only party qualified to do this, especially for venue space other than a conventional hotel.” Parnham agrees that there is little scope
left for cost reductions in many corporate hotel programmes. “Technology has taken a lot of the cost out of the processes, and just as airlines are now providing holidays, HBAs offer meetings because the transient model has less room for delivery on savings. However, in the meetings area, corporates are looking to specialists,” he says. Simon Thompson of ConferencesGroup
explains why: “As a corporate, the larger you are, the less control you can have in terms of local specialist knowledge and personalised service. The end user is not always receiving the best advice or level of service they would like. That knowledge is what allows HBAs and venue finding agencies to maintain their competitive edge,” he says. Leanne Fowler from NYS Corporate points
out that although price and quality usually enjoy equal weighting in most transient tender evaluation models, in meetings RFPs quality often scores highest. “Technology has allowed some elements of travel to be commoditised and driven online because they require much less touch, especially for point to point journeys.” She continues, “Agents have to add value,
and specialist knowledge can be deployed to the client’s biggest benefit in the meetings segment.” Unlike the commoditised nature of transient
hotel bookings, the greater level of ‘touch’ required by meetings favours the more personalised approach of the specialist HBA. However, technology remains a crucial component in the mix, as Martin Coleman of ABC Connection – specialist technology providers to HBAs and TMCs – points out. “In the main, HBAs seem to be lighter on
their feet, offering internal meeting space management, large event management and a range of other services,” says Coleman. “Although a number of hotel groups are now looking to put small meetings inventory live, which will force agents to deliver a different level of service to the clients, the specialist seems better placed to do this.”
On the right track? Chris Parnham concedes that the HBA label may now be a misnomer for many of his members. “Perhaps the 'Venue Booking Agents Association' might be a more appropriate name because it’s not just about hotels anymore.” A buyer from the retail sector goes even further: “Larger corporates will now only engage HBAs for meetings space. Transient hotels and travel needs are best managed by one supplier; the tipping point is whether the client is UK-centric or international, and not the size of spend.” However meetings is not the only product
area into which some HBAs are diversifying. The development of rail booking tools such as
trainline.com and Evolvi has allowed HBAs to dip their toes into traditional TMC waters. Hotelscene is one such agency, as its managing director Nick Foot explains. He sees the departure of both BSI and Expotel from the HBA sector as opening up opportunities, and following some internal restructuring believes that Hotelscene and its competitors are well placed to take full advantage of the development. “If we stand still, either as a business or
as a sector, there’s no future. At Hotelscene we want to develop links with TMCs as well as developing our meetings and events business. Rail is a natural fit with hotels and widens our portfolio but it doesn’t make us a TMC,” he explains.
Tipping points Capita’s Elswood sees the tipping point as “more about the profile of the organisation’s demand, what problems they are trying to fix, their culture and priorities”, but HRS’ Jon West sees things slightly differently. “The choice for corporates is between the
level of content available from conventional, GDS-reliant HBAs and TMCs, compared to a true online provider. HBAs still rely on GDS for inventory availability,” says West.
“ Agents who are open about how and what they earn will thrive, but
bigger agents risk falling backwards into non-transparency, when sales and marketing agreements lead to agents prioritising certain chains in their client proposals
”
➔ 29 THE BUSINESS TRAVEL MAGAZINE THE BUSINESS TRAVEL MAGAZINE 29
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